Thawing apparatus.



J. H. MAcLAUCHLAN.

THAWING APPARATUS. APPLICATIQ NlFIL ED SEPT- 1 1. ms;

1,277,097. Patehted Aug. 27, 1918.

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JAMES H. MACLAUGHLAN, or NEW YORK, N. Y.

TI-IAWING APPARATUS. I

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Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Aug, 27, 1918,

Application filed September 11, 1916. Serial No. 119,369.

2 To all whom it may concern:

erence to apparatus for thawing the contents of freight cars.

The principal object of my invention is to provide a simple arrangement of the parts of the installation, so that the entire structure will be self contained in the sense that the heatingplant will be contained directly in or over the building into which the freight cars are run, the contents of which are to be thawed.

Another object of the invention is to provide means for securing the maximum efficiency from the heating plant, thus tending to a saving of fuel, and increased oper ating efliciency. 1

Other objects and advantages of the invention, and its detail structure and operation will. be fully set out'in the following specification, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevational view, partly in section, of a thawing installation embodying the several features of my invention;

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view thereof, on the line AA of Fig. 1

Fig. 3 is a Vertical sectional view of such installation on the line BB of Fig. 1; i

Fig. 4C is a perspective view of a part of the bridge wallof the furnace, and the ad jacent air heating arrangement; and

Fig. 5 is a sectional view through one of the plates of which the smoke flues of the air heater are constructed.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide as compact an arrangement as is consistent with efficiency of operation, and to this end I have housed the entire installation in a single structure or house denoted generally by the numeral 10. The lower floor, 11, of the structure constitutes the thawing shed, and is provided with the rails 12, upon which the freight cars 13 may travel, thecontents of which cars are to be thawed, as hereinafter described, while the cars remain temporarily in the sheds 11. The next higherfioor, 1 1, which may be termed the firing floor, contains a furnace 15 of any approved construction, a fan 16 for circulating the air through the thawing installation, and a suitable motor 17 for driving the fan.

The upper floor contains the coal bunkers 18 to which coal from any desired source 7 supplied by the conveyen19, the air heating arrangement which is denoted generally as 20, and the stacks 21 for carrying 01f the smoke and gases-to atmosphere.

As stated above, the function of the fan 16 is to circulate air through the installation, and for this purpose the discharge end of the fan casing connects and communi- 'cates with a hot air supply-duct, or a pair 'of such ducts 22, which extend lengthwise of the sheds 1'1 and have discharge ducts 23, through which the heated air is discharged about the cars 13 to thaw the contents of the latter.

The ducts 22 are arranged between parallel walls 24-, extending the entire height of the lower floor or sheds 11, and immediately below the firing floor the walls 24 are prothrough which the air is sucked by the fan 16 from the heater 20.

The heater 20 is arranged immediately in the rear of the bridge wall 27 of the furnace, so that the smoke and gases from the furnace pass through the heater, thereby highly heating its walls, with which the circulating air comes into contact. As a result of this contact the air is heated to a high degree, and this heated air is forced, by the fan, to pass through the ducts 22 and into and through the thawing sheds 11. r

' I prefer to use a heater. such as that shown in Fig. 4, consisting of a series of alternately arranged smoke and air fiues,

the smoke flues being continuous throughout their length from the bridge wall 27 to the stacks 21, while the air flues are vertialternately in an upward and downward course, the first pass being in line with the air uptake 26, and the last pass being in line with the air downtake 28 leading to the inlet side of the fan 16.

The smoke flues, above referred to, are formed by adjacent plates 29, the upper ends of the fines being closed by the plates or barsBO, so that between each pair of plates 29 a continuous flue is formed, which extends from the bridge wall 27 to the stack 21. Each plate 29 has preferably formed on one of its faces a series of projecting pins or studs 31, the studs of adjacent plates resting in contact with each other. The arrangement of the pins, as described, serves to baflle the smoke in its passage through the fines, whereby substantially the entire heat contained in the smoke and combustion gases is abstracted therefrom and imparted to the walls thereof.

The air flues, which lie immediately adjacent and between the smoke flues, comprise juxtaposed casings 32 open both at the top and bottom so that the air may flow therethrough in both directions. The walls of the air fiues 32 are preferably fairly thin in order that theymay be well and easily heated by the smoke and gases passing through the smoke fiues formedbetween the walls 29. There are four such air flues, placed end to end lengthwise adjacent each smoke flue, to provide four air passes, but

I it will of course be understood that a greater or less number of air passes may be provided, as the exigencies of any particular installation may necessitate. The smoke and air fiues extend transversely the entire width of the furnace 15, although by suitable means some of the lines may be rendered inoperative if this be desired.

The operation of the invention is as follows:-The furnace 15 being fired, the smoke and combustion gases therefrom will pass over the bridge wall 27, through the smoke fiues 29, and out through the stacks 21, highly heating the walls 29 and the casings 32 in their passage. As the fan 16 is caused to rotate by the motor 17, the air in the sheds 11 will be drawn up through the openings 25 and into the air uptakes 26. From the air uptakes 26 the air will flow through the heater casings 32 alternately in an upwardly and downwardly course, becoming highly heated in its passage, and finally being sucked by the fan through the downtake-28, and forced through the duct 22 into the sheds 1.1. When the airreaches the sheds 11 it is highly heated and adapted -'as above described, continues so long as the fan 16 is kept in motion.

hat I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. In a thawing apparatus of the character described, the combination of a thaw ing shed, a hot air supply duct extending therethrough, a furnace, an air heater comprising alternately arranged vertical air flues aiidhorizontal smoke flues adapted to be heated by smoke and combustion gases from said furnace, and means for circulating air between said heater and said duct.

2. In a thawing apparatus of the character described, the combination of a thawing shed, a hot a1r supply duct extending therein, a blower in communication with said duct, a heater in superposed relation to said blower, said heater having alternating vertical air fines and horizontal smoke flues, an air uptake at one side of said blower establishing communication between said duct and one end of said heater, an air downtake at the other side of said blower establishing communication between the inlet side of said blower and the opposite end of said heater, and a furnace adjacent one end of said heater and in position to have the smoke and gases from said furnace pass through said heater.

3. In a thawing apparatus of the character described, the combination of a thawing shed, a hot air supply duct therein, a blower for forcing air through said duct, an air heater in communication with said shed, said air heater comprising a series of continuous smoke flues and a series of discontinuous air fiues arranged to have the air flow therethrough in directions substantially at right angles to the direction in which smoke flows through the smoke fines, and a furnace for heating said air heater.

4. In a thawing apparatus of the. character described, the combination of a thawing shed, a hot air supply duct therein, a blower in communication with said duct and adapted, to force hot air through the same into said shed, a furnace at one side of said blower, a stack at the other side thereof, and an air heater arranged between said furnace and said stack, said heater comprising a series of continuous flues extending horizontally from the furnace to the stack and through which smoke and combustion gases are adapted to pass, and a series of discontinuous vertical lines through which air is adapted to pass alternately in an upward and downward direction.

In testimony whereof I have affixed my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JAMES H. MAoLAUCHLAN.

Witnesses O'r'ro Monk, CLARICE FRANCE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Iatents, Washington, D. 0. 

